Pennsylvania is seeing a higher rate of positive tests for the coronavirus and now nearly half of the state’s counties bear monitoring for COVID-19, Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration said Monday.
Across Pennsylvania, the percentage of positive tests has risen to 5%, Levine said at a news conference Monday. Levine said the positive rate rising to 5% represents a “crossroads,” since the rate was at 4.2% a week ago. The health secretary has said a rate of 5% is a benchmark of wider community spread.
The Wolf administration said 30 of the state’s 67 counties bear watching because at least 5% of those tested are positive for the coronavirus. A week ago, 21 counties hit that benchmark.
Each week, the state provides a listing of counties that bear monitoring for coronavirus cases.
These counties now bear watching, according to the Wolf administration: Huntingdon (12.0%), Bradford (11.2%), Lawrence (9.0%), Lebanon (8.7%), Westmoreland (8.4%), Perry (8.2%), Bedford (7.6%), Luzerne (7.5%), Schuylkill (7.5%), Tioga (7.2%), York (7.2%), Indiana (7.0%), Lackawanna (7.0%), Venango (7.0%), Mifflin (6.8%), Armstrong (6.7%), Berks (6.6%), Cumberland (6.6%), Montour (6.3%), Philadelphia (6.1%), Franklin (6.0%), Elk (5.9%), Washington (5.9%), Mercer (5.6%), Dauphin (5.5%), Susquehanna (5.5%), Blair (5.3%), Clinton (5.3%), Clarion (5.1%) and Northumberland (5.1%).
Levine has said the expected surge in coronavirus cases this fall has arrived. The Pennsylvania Department of Health has reported more than 1,000 new cases per day for 21 consecutive days.
On Friday, the department recorded a one-day high with more than 2,200 new coronavirus cases. The state has registered more than 2,000 cases three times in the past week. Pennsylvania had never hit that mark previously.
The state has improved its testing capacity and is performing far more tests than even a few months ago. But Levine has noted the recent rise in cases isn’t simply the result of more tests; the percentage of people who are positive for the coronavirus is rising.
Rising hospitalizations
Hospitalizations have been rising in recent weeks. The health department reports more than 1,100 coronavirus patients are being treated in hospitals, compared to about 400 in September. Hospitalizations remain well below the peak of about 3,000 in the spring.
Still, Levine said the rise in hospitalizations is troubling. Given the rise in new cases, she anticipates the number of patients in hospital beds to continue to rise.
“We do expect the number of hospitalizations to increase," Levine said.
But Levine said hospitals have more capacity and are able to provide better treatment now that they have had more experience with the coronavirus. Levine said doctors are learning more about when patients should be placed on ventilators and when that isn’t the best option for treatment.
Statewide, more than 195,000 people have contracted the virus and more than 8,600 deaths in Pennsylvania have been tied to COVID-19.
Levine said despite what some officials have suggested, it is possible to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
“We can control COVID-19," Levine said. "We need to use all the public health strategies in our toolbox.”
Levels of transmission
Each week, the state provides an update of the level of coronavirus transmission in each county (low, moderate and substantial). The Wolf administration has encouraged schools to use the level of transmission as a benchmark on holding in-person classes or a mix of face-to-face instruction and remote learning.
School districts in counties with substantial levels of transmission are recommended to utilize remote learning. In counties with “moderate” or “low” levels of community transmission, schools are recommended to either have in-person classes or a hybrid mix of face-to-face classes and remote instruction.
There are now 15 counties with substantial levels of transmission, while 43 counties are considered to have moderate transmission, according to the Wolf administration. There are 9 counties with low levels of transmission.
Substantial: Berks, Bradford, Centre, Elk, Huntingdon, Lackawanna, Lawrence, Lebanon, Luzerne, Mifflin, Montour, Northumberland, Philadelphia, Schuylkill, and Westmoreland
Moderate: Adams, Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Bedford, Blair, Bucks, Butler, Cambria, Carbon, Chester, Clarion, Clearfield, Clinton, Columbia, Crawford, Cumberland, Dauphin, Delaware, Erie, Fayette, Franklin, Greene, Indiana, Juniata, Lancaster, Lehigh, Lycoming, McKean, Mercer, Monroe, Montgomery, Northampton, Perry, Snyder, Somerset, Susquehanna, Tioga, Union, Venango, Washington, Wyoming and York
Low: Cameron, Forest, Fulton, Jefferson, Pike, Potter, Sullivan, Warren and Wayne
The state said it made no changes to its list of states travel recommendations. Visitors to some states are asked to self-quarantine for 14 days upon returning to Pennsylvania.
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